New apartment complex under way

At Tuesday night’s Basehor Planning Commission meeting, commissioners voted, 6-0 with Joe McArdle absent, to approve a preliminary development plan and preliminary plat for phase IV of the Creek Ridge Subdivision. Phase IV includes the portion of the property located in the 1700-1900 block of 158th Street.

Jeff Scherer, Scherer Construction, Inc., requested a rezoning of the property from neighborhood business to planned residential in order to accommodate a 64-unit complex. The complex will have 32 one-bedroom apartments, 32 two-bedroom apartments, a playground, a clubhouse, a pool and car garages and lots.

“I believe there’s a demand for this type of development in Basehor,” Scherer said. “Especially for single mothers and young people in the community.”

Each one-bedroom unit will be 688 square feet, and each two-bedroom unit will be 990 square feet. The smaller apartments will have a $575 rent fee per month, while the larger apartments will be $695.

The one-bedroom apartments, at 688 square feet, do not meet current zoning regulations that require a minimum square footage of 750 for residential units. However, the planning commission and the Basehor City Council are in the process of changing those regulations to allow a minimum of 550 square feet.

A few commissioners had some hesitations about the size of the one-bedroom apartments, but Scherer said he didn’t see it being a problem.

“I think the demand for the complex outweighs the smaller size, which is way above the new regulations, if they’re passed,” he said.

Planning director Dustin Smith said he didn’t anticipate encountering any trouble during the new regulation approval process.

“The way I understood it at (Monday night’s) council meeting, this is moving forward,” Smith said. “There’s a possibility it won’t be passed, but the way I understood it, that won’t happen.”

Another concern about the complex is the traffic congestion that might occur with construction. As part of the project, a portion of Landauer Street must be extended to provide at least two ways into and out of the complex. The chosen area for extension was from the west entrance on Landauer to 158th Street.

Traffic in the area will increase during and after construction, which Smith and Scherer said shouldn’t cause major problems. Smith said the surrounding street system of Parallel Road, 155th Street and 158th Street had more than enough capacity to accommodate the anticipated number of daily travelers.

The commissioners agreed such a development would benefit the city, and with their votes, they got the ball rolling.

“I think something like this is needed in the community,” planning commissioner Ed Bush said. “A lot of people can’t afford to buy houses right now, and a lot of people will never want to buy houses. Those people need a place to live.”

Also on Tuesday night, the commission:

• Approved the minutes from the April 7 planning commission meeting.

• Discussed appointing, at Mayor Terry Hill’s recommendation, a new commissioner after the expiration of commissioner Jason Logsdon’s term. Logsdon will serve on the commission until July.